Police: Driver Hid Child, Heroin Supplies Under Blanket in Back Seat

A Chelsea man was charged with hiding drug paraphernalia next to a 3-year-old under a blanket in the back seat of his car.

An officer preformed a random license query on a vehicle traveling northbound on Pearl Street at about 5:51 p.m. on Wednesday, March 20.

The query revealed that the owner of the brown 2007 Ford Taurus had a suspended license. The officer reportedly observed three occupants in the vehicle, a male driver, a female passenger in the front passenger seat and a male passenger seated behind her.

The vehicle pulled out from a parked spot in front of the Brookline Village T stop by the time the officer caught up them. The passenger in the back seat exited the car and boarded the train heading inbound towards Boston.

The officer pulled the vehicle over in front of 10 Brookline Place West on Pearl Street and asked the driver if the vehicle belonged to him. When the driver replied, “yes,” the officer asked for his license and registration.

At this point, backup arrived and the driver identified himself to the officer as Elisur Marrero. The passenger identified herself as Milvia Rojas. As the officer informed Marrero why he had pulled them over, Rojas reportedly reached into the back seat of the car and adjusted a blanket, which appeared to be covering something.

At this point, the officer reported that the blanket moved on it’s own. Officers observed a small child lying down on the back seat under the blanket. Officers later learned that the child was 3-years-old.

The officer read Marrero and Rojas their Miranda Rights and asked who the child was. Marrero reportedly refused to answer. When asked what they were doing in town, Marrero said that they were dropping off their friend who lived in Allston. Officers made note of the fact that the man boarded the train heading away from Allston.

Marrero told the officer that the child in the back seat was his grandson and that he was taking care of him. Officers suspected that Marrero was being evasive, uncooperative and dishonest. The officer asked Marrero if there were any drugs or weapons in the car. Marrero said that there wasn’t.

Marrero, 44, of 147 Essex Street, Chelsea, was arrested and charged with operating with a suspended license.

Officers spoke to Rojas, who stated that she awoke around noon and called Marrero. She had $200 on her and stated that she was going to purchase something.

Officers searched the car and found a gray drawstring bag on the back seat behind the passenger seat. Inside the bag were 23 capped, unused needles, multiple Q-tips, tissues, a lighter, cigarettes, a plastic spoon with brown residue on it and two metal spoons with brown substances on them. All of these items were under the blanket with the child.

Officers asked Rojas if the substance on the spoons was heroin, which she reportedly said yes to.

Rojas, 25, of 30 Iroquois Street, Boston, was charged with knowingly being present where heroin is kept.

Marrero was charged with a second subsequent offense of operating after a suspension, possession of a Class A substance and a seatbelt violation (child not in car seat).

Fallon Paramedics arrived on scene and evaluated the child, who was unharmed. Police brought the child back to the station and notified the Department of Children and Families, who sent two investigators to interview Marrero. During this interview, Marrero told police the name of the child’s mother and stated that he and his wife, whom he was separated from, were the caretakers. The grandmother was called in.

Both the mother and grandmother arrived at the station and provided identification to verify who they were. An officer ran a query on both parties and found that the mother, Felicia Giron, 22, of 90 Adams Street, Dorchester had an active default warrant for her arrest out of Boston District Court for Threats to Commit a Crime. Officers arrested Giron and released the child into the grandmother’s custody.